1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to television technology, and more particularly to providing a television channel selection canvas.
2. Background Art
Sources of video signals available within a typical household have proliferated, and are likely to continue to do so. Hundreds of television channels are typically available through digital cable or satellite television service. Moreover in a residence, a consumer may also have a personal video recorder (PVR), a security monitoring system, a video baby monitor, and/or a security monitoring system that produce additional video signals.
Existing television channel guides and remote controls provide a relatively crude mechanism for previewing and choosing which television video signal to view, and do not support video signals from other sources, such as a security camera. For example, existing cable TV selection guides provide a listing of channels that can be viewed. These guides typically provide a scrolling list of channels that identify the channel number and programming information (e.g., name of show, time, rating, etc.). In order to view what is playing on a particular channel, a user will usually have to wait for the guide to scroll through the entire list of channels. Even with basic cable services, where only 50-100 channels are available, waiting for a channel of interest to appear can be tedious and frustrating. While digital cable and satellite TV services allow a user to jump to a particular channel in a selection guide, these guides remain limited in that they typically show only the channel and title of the show. Upon selection of a particular channel, a summary description can be provided, or the video signal associated with the channel can be displayed.
Some higher end television sets can display a picture in a picture (PIP) as a way of previewing a channel. PIP systems are limited, however, in that they typically show only one alternative channel and can not be configured to a particular user. Furthermore PIP displays on a television typically provide limited previewing and selection capabilities. As a result consumers have not widely embraced PIP.
Historically, selection guides and channel previewing mechanisms have been limited by the processing power and analog nature of television sets and cable set top boxes. Increasingly television signals are being transmitted digitally, and televisions and set top boxes have increasing processing power and ability to manipulate signals. Other technology advances have stimulated the deployment of other sources of video signals, such as security cameras and video phones. Finally, alternatives to distributing video signals throughout a residence are beginning to emerge. These alternatives can be used to form an integrated in-house network for all video sources. While these technologies are developing, previewing, integration and selection capabilities for video signals have lagged behind, and remain relatively primitive. Current video previewing and selection mechanisms do not take full advantage of the migration to digital technologies and the added processing power in televisions and set top boxes.
What is needed is a system that provides a user interface mechanism for allowing a user to conveniently preview video signals and select a video to be viewed.